Composition of matter for the production of formaldehyde solutions.



UNTTED COMPOSITION OF MATTER FOR THE No Drawing. Original application T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE Pnnscorr FULLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Niagara Falls, county of Niagara, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in @0111 positions of Matter for the Production of Formaldehyde Solutions, fully described and represented in the following specification,

This invention relates to a. composition of matter for the production of formaldehyde solutions and constitutes division of my application Serial No. $2,025, filed June 1, 1914:.

It has been the practice in the art heretofore to produce and ship formaldehyde in a strong or concentrated water solution, from which solutions of the desired strength can be made for technical purposes by mere dilution. The strong solution usually contains about 40% formaldehyde and this can then be diluted with water to give the desired solution of 5% to 10%, such as is employed for technical purposes.

It has been known that there are polymerization products of formaldehyde which exist in a solid form, as for example, paraformaldehyde (CH O) and trioxymetllylene, (C11 0), These solid products, however, are not adapted for ready solution in water. For example, paraformaldehyde is practically insoluble in cold water and is only fairly soluble in boiling water, while trioxymethylene is insoluble in both hot and. cold water.

The object of the present invention is to provide a composition of matter in solid form, which can be dissolved readily in cold water or water at normal temperatures, to give a solution of f0 maldehyde capable of use for the usual technical purposes I have discovered that a polymerization product of formaldehyde, in solid form, may be mixed with a very small quantity of a suitable solubleizing material to form a solid composition, which, when united with water at ordinary temperatures, will readily produce a solution of formaldehyde in water, of a strength sullicient for all technical purposes, while at the same time the solubleizing material, or its residues, will be present in so small a quantity in the solution as to be incapable of exerting a deleterious influence in any cf )llCfliT-lOUS of f l" .gl, i

produce a base capable of rea ie polymer of formaldehyde, "n 1 as solubleizing materials base, may employ any alkali a s ch for example as the hydroxids of the all metals; but I have found it advantageous to use a salt of basic property, which by hydrolysis will set free a base, such, for example, as neutral sulfites, carbonates, ars nites, tetraborates, dimetal phosphates, pyiopliospliates, cyanids, 810,, of the alkali metals The best results are obtained, however, by the use of carbonates or sullites, because the solid compositions therefrom are more stable and also more speedily dissolved in When such bases or salts are employed in very small amounts, progressive solution of the polymeric a lehyde occurs. For example, T have determined that as little as 0.0005 molecular proportion of sodium sulfite will cause the solution of 1 molecular proportion of oaraformaldehyde in water,

at normal te"peratures, giving e product containing 20/0, by volume, of she paraformaldehyde.

T am aware that sodium sullite has been used in solution to react on polymerization preducts of fi udel yde, but in such prior uses known me a molecular excess of sulfite has been used, thereby resulting in delti nite association product of the aldehyde and the salt. One explanation of the reason for the different result attained by my invention is that possibly the alkali supplied as a base or that liberated by the hydrolysis of the basic salt causes the solution of a correspond1eamount of formaldehyde to give a hyp net-ical sodium derivative of methylene :ol. s at once hydrolyzes tain in it of concentration of the aldehyde,

which, with sodium sulfite as a solubleizing material, reaches about 25% to 30%.

It has long been known that polymers of formaldehyde are capable of reacting with solutions of strong alkalis, but in such case the resultant product is either methyl alcohol and formic acid, or condensation prod ucts, such as polyglycols, methylenitan, sugars, etc., according to the conditions of concentration and temperature.

It has also been known that strong solutions of sodium sulfite will react with trioXy methylene to give aloose association product, of 1 molecule of each, Which, upon heating, undergoes a further reaction with the formation of a stable bisulfite compound, C11 0. NaHSO and the liberation of sodium hydroXid. Hence, it is important, in carrying out my invention, to use relatively small amounts of the solubleizing material, that is to say, a less-than-molecular-amount of the solubleizing material, in order to accomplish the desired results.

While, as I have heretofore suggested, it is possible to use only 0.0005 molecular pro portion of sodium sulfite for solubleizing 1 molecular proportion of paraformaldehyde, yet I find it better in practice to increase the proportion of sodium sulfite to approximately 0.003 molecular proportion, because the stability and rapidity of solution are thus increased over those of the compounds of minimum proportion.

The important feature of my present invention consists in incorporating the solubleizing material in proper proportions with the suitable polymerization product of formaldehyde, so that the resulting composition in solid form 'may be readily transported and handled on the market and is ready for use in making a formaldehyde solution, by the more addition of water at ordinary temperatures. The great advantage of such a solid composition, over the strong solutions of formaldehyde as now manufactured and sold, is that 63% of the weight of the strong solutions consists of water and alcohol, and hence by my invention the expense of transporting such additional weight, the dangers of breakage of containers for the liquid, the decomposition of the formaldehyde when kept, and similar disadvantages, obvious to those skilled in the art, are overcome.

The following specific example is given of a composition which satisfactorily attains the object of my invention: 198 kg. of 95% paraformaldehyde is intimately mixed With 2 kg. of crystallized sodium sulfite. This composition is m solid form and will not deteriorate or undergo decomposition \\'llll111 any reasonable time, if properly packed.

From this composition, a formaldehyde solution, satisfactory for all of the uses to which such formaldehyde solutions are put in actual practice, may be readily obtained by dissolving the solid in water at normal temperatures. For example. if 20 kg. of the above mentioned composition be united with 80 kg. of water, there will be obtained 100 kg. of a solution containing 2095-, by volume. of formaldehyde. This solution also will contain, in addition to the formaldehyde. about 0.1% of added matter, due to the addition of the solubleizing material and consists of residues thereof, but the nature and amount of this residual matter is such that it is incapable of producing any harmful effect in any of the usual technical applications of the formaldehyde solution.

WVhat is claimed is:

1. A composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and a solubleizing material.

2. A. composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and an ingredient capable of giving a basicreaction on solution in water.

3. A composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and a salt of basic reaction.

4. A composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde, and an alkali metal salt of basic reaction.

5. A. composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and a salt which on solution in water hydrolyzes to give a base.

6. A. composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and an alkali metal sulfite.

7. A composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and sodium sulfite.

8. A composition of matter comprising a solid polymerization product of formaldehyde and not more than 0.6% of sodium sulfite.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGE PRESCOTT FULLER.

Witnesses:

H. G. LANBOCKER, V. J. STAFFORD. 

